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Rik Scarce

@rikscarce.bsky.social
709 followers 77 following 1.1K posts

I'm a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Gettysburg National Military Park and retired sociology professor who's eager to build a better world. ("Scarce" like money: does not rhyme with "farce," although sometimes....) This is my personal account.

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Reposted by Rik Scarce
Rev Peter W Nimmo @peternimmo.bsky.social · 1h
They're getting as bad as Putin's Russia
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Matt Binder @mattbinder.bsky.social · 19h
the tech industry is about to invent books
Andrew Yeung 
@andruyeung
X.com
We created gyms because modern day work no
longer required physical activity. Without exercise,
our muscles atrophy.
I predict we'll need gyms for our brains too, once Al
starts doing our knowledge work.
10:53 PM • 10/4/26 • 1.3M Views
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Pennsylvania Capital-Star @penncapital-star.com · 7h
The Democratic effort builds on regular election protection methods and incorporates practices and procedures that grew out of the effort to document ICE agents’ actions during the immigration surge in Minnesota this year.
bit.ly
Dems double down on election protection in Pa. amid Trump administration's threats • Pennsylvania Capital-Star
The Democratic effort builds on regular election protection methods and incorporates practices and procedures that grew out of the effort to document ICE agents’ actions during the immigration surge in Minnesota this year.
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Raider @iwillnotbesilenced.bsky.social · 23h
The Trump administration’s actions resulted in the destruction of the largest ancient Cottonwood tree on Indigenous territory in Arizona. This tree, known as the “Grandmother Tree,” was 250 years old.
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Sandieglo @sandieglo.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
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Rick Claypool @rickclaypool.bsky.social · 7h
Since Trump took office, @publiccitizen.bsky.social has tracked the admin's retreat from enforcement against corporate lawbreaking. Today, our new report documents the admin's cancellation of investigations, lawsuits, & penalties against more than *200* corporations. www.citizen.org/article/trum...
citizen.org
Trump’s Cascade of Canceled Corporate Enforcement Against Over 200 Corporations - Public Citizen
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Democracy Defenders Action @democracydefendersaction.org · 22h
Trump said he’d “pay for” the ads. Now the WH says that does NOT mean reimbursing taxpayers for the money already spent. MAGA Inc. will cover future ads—but taxpayers are still stuck with the $20M+ bill for political propaganda Trump & should have paid for in the first place.
washingtonexaminer.com
Trump won't reimburse government for public service announcements
Trump's super PAC, MAGA, Inc., has confirmed it is paying for the forthcoming ads.
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Pennsylvania Capital-Star @penncapital-star.com · 18h
Speakers at the rally were critical of Shapiro for his initial embrace of Amazon and other tech companies as they scoped out sites. The development guidelines that now encompass much of the commonwealth’s data center policy are too little, too late, they said.
bit.ly
Pennsylvanians call on Shapiro, lawmakers to pass data center moratorium • Pennsylvania Capital-Star
Speakers at the rally were critical of Shapiro for his initial embrace of Amazon and other tech companies as they scoped out sites. The development guidelines that now encompass much of the commonwealth’s data center policy are too little, too late, they said.
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Pennsylvania Capital-Star @penncapital-star.com · 22h
The about-face by the president is familiar. Trump encouraged his voters to cast their ballots by mail in 2024 and has repeatedly voted by mail himself, despite a long record of attacking the practice. From @statesnewsroom.com
penncapital-star.com
Trump drops longtime aversion to mail-in voting with GOP trailing in polls • Pennsylvania Capital-Star
President Donald Trump wants to curtail mail ballots, but with Republicans falling behind in the polls, the president is now urging his supporters to vote in the midterm elections any way they can, in...
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mtsw @mtsw.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Saying he'd be cool with Iran nuking my home city is pretty bad but not quite as bad as when Hillary said some trump supporters were deplorable so I can see why the media turned the latter into a major scandal and not the former
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
No fence should ever go up on Lafayette Square again. Want to see the last one? Visit Gettysburg National Military Park--much of that fence forms the SE border of Soldiers' National Cemetery. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Inside Trump's Plan to Fence Off a Historic Protest Site (Gift Article)
The president’s proposal to enclose a park in Washington could alter how the space has been used for generations.
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Peggy Flanagan @peggyflanagan.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Openly provoking a foreign adversary to kill millions of Americans is completely unhinged and reckless. Donald Trump is the most dangerous and corrupt president in our nation’s history. The stakes are too high to send him another yes vote from Minnesota.
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#TeslaTakedown @teslatakedown.com · 06/10/2026
Biggest filing of the cycle so far, adding $4,228,309.49 in the last 48. With that Elon is over $30m, including: -$11,205,796.82 vs @jamestalarico.bsky.social -$5,012,118.80 vs @sherrodbrownoh.bsky.social -$4,499,737.73 vs. @abdulelsayed.bsky.social -$1,055,949.93 vs @troyjackson207.bsky.social
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Zeke Hausfather @zekehausfather.com · 05/10/2026
We also see countries where rapid growth of solar and wind has played a key role in absolutely reducing power sector emissions, not just meeting new demand. The US has seen power sector emissions fall 37%, the EU by 55%, and the UK by 75% since 2005:
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Zeke Hausfather @zekehausfather.com · 05/10/2026
Clean energy has been wildly successful. Non-hydro renewables (primarily solar and wind) have increased from near-zero in 2005 to producing 22% of global electricity, and are on track to produce more than natural gas this year:
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Zeke Hausfather @zekehausfather.com · 05/10/2026
I often see people argue that clean energy is not reducing emissions, because it just adds to rather than replaces fossil fuels. This argument is deeply misguided – clean energy built since 2005 has displaced 23 billion tons. I dive in over at The Climate Brink:
theclimatebrink.com
What if the world hadn't built wind and solar?
Clean energy does not simply “add to” global energy use; it displaces fossil sources that would otherwise get built.
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Thomas Zimmer @thomaszimmer.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The fact that the president of the United States and his party are engaged in a full-on assault on the constitutional order, that they will obviously continue to search for ways to subvert the election, is a reminder of how far away from a stable democracy America currently is.
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Heather Cox Richardson (TDPR) @hcrichardson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The amount of money the administration is promising in order to buy votes is significantly less than the amount of money it is taking away in programs and services. And it's OUR money!
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Hot dawg! No, seriously, I'll bring the hot dogs....Is there much overlap with the Southern Historical Society papers? I've never looked at either, but I've heard the SHS beat the Lost Cause drum pretty hard. How does Confederate Veteran differ--more first-had accounts of life in the CS army?
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13BulliTs Loves the EU @13bullits.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Another stat showing the oil prices going up is Trumps fault. Not Ukraine.
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
A disastrous couple of sentences: copyedit much, @miamiherald.com? "...Donalds told donors he needs even more money because the race tight with Jolly. The backlash among Hispanics to Trump's immigration crackdown can not be underestimated...." www.miamiherald.com/news/article...
miamiherald.com
The math says no. The mood says maybe. Can Dems win Florida governor?
The mood shifted in Democrat gubernatorial candidate David Jolly's camp in mid-September.
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Tyler, from the Internet (Haunted) @tylerfromtheinternet.com · 05/10/2026
the differences in sports across the pond is always interesting. look how the brits do bowling. totally different than how we do it
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Plant Powered A-ron🌱🌎💙🌊 @plantpowered1971.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Holy shit...this is incredibly accurate!!
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The Kyiv Independent @kyivindependent.com · 05/10/2026
⚡️ 'It was humiliating' — ex-US Army Secretary says Washington lags behind Ukraine in war innovations.
kyivindependent.com
'It was humiliating' — ex-US Army Secretary says Washington lags behind Ukraine in war innovations
"When you would see what Ukraine's budget was and how small it was relative to ours and how, despite that, they had better weapons of war, it was a wake-up call," former U.S. Army Secretary Dan Drisco...
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WuTangIsForTheChildren @wutangforchildren.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Jack Smith….man of the people at the Power to the People concert hanging out on the lawn….no fancy pavilion seats or backstage laminate pass
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
The Klanprez administration is costing taxpayers SO much money thanks to their mindless libertarianism: "Let's dismantle government, leaving only defense!" Turns out government actually does a ton of important stuff that business DOES NOT WANT TO DO and can't...and needs itself. Profoundly stoopid.
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Mark Z. Jacobson @mzjacobson.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
74% of new residential PV in CA had batteries in '25 vs 58% in '24 Outside of CA, 17% of new PV had batteries vs 7% in '24 All US, 37% of new PV had batteries vs 25% in 2024 450,000 new US res systems in '25 (158,000 in CA; 292,000 out). Total: 5.3 mil to date www.pv-magazine.com/2026/10/03/b...
pv-magazine.com
Battery storage paired with 37% of new U.S. residential solar systems in 2025 - pv magazine Global
Battery storage was paired with 37% of new U.S. residential solar installations in 2025, up from 25% a year earlier, with adoption accelerating both in California and across other states.
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
More tea, anyone?
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Bryce Covert @brycecovert.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Fascinating new study of New Mexico's universal childcare program, first of its kind, finds the program dramatically increased work for lower-income moms www.the74million.org/zero2eight/n...
the74million.org
Nearly a Year In, Universal Childcare Is Reshaping Work for Moms in New Mexico
A new study highlights some early impacts of universal childcare on labor supply for mothers in New Mexico.
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Kevin M. Levin @civilwarmemory.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
The African American Civil War Museum in DC is Now Open #CivilWarMemory #publichistory #museums #AfricanAmericanHistory 🗃️ kevinmlevin.substack.com/p/the-africa...
kevinmlevin.substack.com
The African American Civil War Museum in DC is Now Open
Congratulations to Frank Smith Jr.
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am-mccarthy.bsky.social @am-mccarthy.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Universities keep rewarding the architects of the demise of our democracy.
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KennyMack1971 @kennymack1971.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
So mass deportation didn’t lead to more jobs for Americans? Holy shit. Sold y’all racist policy and all you got was played Mayo Nation.
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Marketplace @marketplace.org · 02/10/2026
If progress continues at the current rate, it will be 200 years before Black women close the gender wage gap with white men.
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Heck yeah!
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Meade Krosby @meadekrosby.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Some excellent news to end the week.
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Timmons Roberts @timmonsroberts.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Go! "The coalition includes the states of New York, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin."
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Here's a classic example of environmental injustice dressed up in fancy new AI clothes. AI is "the future:" the future of oppression. Communities without the expertise, money, and allies to fight back don't and won't, and business knows it. Come together, y'all--this future is our collective future.
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Amy Maxmen, PhD @amymaxmen.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Absolutely stunning/horrifying to see a 5th measles death in PA. This means the outbreak is probably far higher than numbers count, seeing as roughly 1-3 people die per 1,000. Many people aren't being tested. Also: I'm going to states now for info, not the CDC* app.powerbigov.us/view?r=eyJrI...
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The Downballot @the-downballot.com · 01/10/2026
Even more vividly, Republicans are outspending Democrats in both #OHSen & #NCSen, but Democrats are nonetheless airing *more* ads. Why? Because, by law, candidates pay the cheapest ad rates, while super PACs pay market rates—and GOP spending is heavily reliant on super PACs.
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
This aligns exactly with what we know about noncitizen voting; it is extremely rare (9 noncitizen votes in MN out of 3,253,920 in the 2024 election, or 0.0002%), and when it occurs it’s most often green card holders who were mistakenly told they could vote (none of these people are undocumented).
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
My bet is "considering" is doing outsized lifting in this quote. But why a sponsor would ever open its mouth publicly in a situation like this--other than to privately scream at the team and demand a re-do of their sponsorship deal based on the harm already done--is beyond me.
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Kate from Kharkiv @kateinkharkiv.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Today, Russia struck a school in Kyiv with a drone during the morning hours. At the time of the strike, about 100 schoolchildren and 60 staff members were in the shelter; fortunately, no one was hurt. Who does that? What kind of barbarians attack children on a school day?
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Mark Z. Jacobson @mzjacobson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Rep. Dave Min: "We should be leading the future, not subsidizing the horse and buggy." "China is dominating the clean energy sector, creating a clear national security issue, even as Repubs keep doubling down on aging and expensive fossil fuel technologies." youtube.com/shorts/VHwVo...
youtube.com
Rep. Dave Min: "We should be leading the future, not subsidizing the horse and buggy."
YouTube video by Rep. Dave Min
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Rik Scarce @rikscarce.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Completely agree: some of us do our best "thinking" through writing, and I said as much in my classes, but to argue that writing is the only way to think? Preposterous. I'd have stopped after sentence 1 myself, but thank you for saving me the effort of reading even that much drivel.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 29/09/2026
Jack Smith: "Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in serious crimes against our nation ... rather than accept his defeat in the 2020 election, he engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power"
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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
One thing that’s interesting about this is that it shows that despite insisting the wokes overinterpet everything, conservatives are actually aware of and agree with their critics about how coded racist appeals work, they just like them bsky.app/profile/newr...
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Marc Elias @marcelias.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A prominent election denier whom the Trump administration hired to pursue investigations into election-related conspiracy theories has resigned several months after he failed to find evidence that the 2020 presidential race was stolen. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
democracydocket.com
Election denier Kurt Olsen leaves DOJ after failing to find evidence of stolen election
A prominent election denier whom the Trump administration hired to pursue investigations into election-related conspiracy theories has resigned several months after he failed to find evidence that the...
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The Kyiv Independent @kyivindependent.com · 29/09/2026
⚡️Russian troops allegedly using civilians as 'human shields' to flee via Kupiansk pipeline, Khartiia Corps says. Children, elderly people, and a person on crutches walked alongside draft-age men who were likely Russian soldiers wearing civilian clothes, according to Khartiia Corps' drone footage.
kyivindependent.com
Russian troops allegedly using civilians as 'human shields' to flee via Kupiansk pipeline, Khartiia Corps says
Children, elderly people, and a person on crutches walked alongside draft-age men who were likely Russian soldiers wearing civilian clothes, according to Khartiia Corps' drone footage.
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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
"Fuck that." "I'm Sherrod Brown and I approve of this message."
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Ben McWilliams @bmcwilliams.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Battery electric share of EU vehicle registrations continues to grow and break records. 28 percent of new registrations in August. Up 10 percentage points year-on-year. european-clean-tech-tracker.bruegel.org/s/E2BN1A
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